Retarding means for railway car doors



' June 6 1944. A. E, SMALL RETRDING MEANS `FOR RAILWAY CAR DOORS 'Filed sein. 2. 1941 6 Sheets-S'heet 1 IIJrIIIIIIIl-H larll .June 6, 1944. A. E. sMALIT y' 2,350,645

RETARDING MEANS FOR RAILWAY CAR DooRs l Filed sept. 2, 1941 s sheets-sheet 2 June 6, 1944. A. E. SMALL i 2,350,645 RETARDIG MEANS FOR RAILWAY CAR DOORS Filed sept. 2, 1941 e sheets-snm s `June 6, 1944. A. E. SMALL 2,350,645-

' REABDING MEANS FOR RAILWAY `CAR DOORS l Filed Sept.. 2, 1941 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 Jung 6; 1 944. A. E. SMALLv y 2,3504545 RETARDING MEANS FOR RAILWY CAR DOORS t Filed Sept. 2, 1941 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 j l f i s k Y 5 af .S g

lima/2.50%: f #fm1/r. fm!! A. E. SMALL RETARDING MEANS Fon RAILWAY CAR DooRs Filed Sept. 2, 1941 June 6,1944.` 2,350,645

e sheets-sheet Ae Patented June 6, 1944 RETARDING MEANS Fon. RAILWAY CAR poorts Arthur E. Small, Porter, Ind., assignor, by mesne assignments, to Standard Railway Equipment Manufacturing Company, a corporation of Delaware Application September 2, 1941, SerialNo. 409,206

('Ql. Zim- 68) 5 Claims.

The invention'relates to doors for railway carsA and more particularly to means for preventing violent and unrestricted movement of a sliding door during service movements of the car. I'he usual type of sliding side door is Well known in the railway car'art wherein a door is movable in a horizontal direction on a track substantially parallel with the wall of the car and moves into and out of alignment with the doorway in the side Wall.l Y Y Various means for supporting and moving such a sliding door are use d. Oneof the best known isthat disclosed in Gilpin Patent No. 1,902,772 of March 21, 1933, whereinA rollers are rotatably mounted upon the door and a track engaged by such rollers is rigidly carried by the car. The track is provided withdepres-sions located at the proper places so that when the door is inthe full open or full closed position, the rollers are above the depressions. The rollers are thus relieved of the Weight of the door and, in their places, the door is supported by engagement of rigid parts carried respectively by the door and car. The friction between 'such rigid part-s tends to prevent movement of the door.

In recent years a combination of circumstances, such as increased train and switching speeds and heavier loading of cars, has tended to impart more'violent impacts to cars during service with the result that the above mentioned frictional rei? sistance as well as other retarding means sometimes used have become inadequate to prevent accidental door'movement. Such movements are liable to cause damage to the car and to the door,

as well as injury to an operator who happens to get in the way of such a moving door.

An object of my invention isto provide a retarding means for a railway clar'door which is operative. in the full open and full closed position and in any intermediate position for preventing unrestricted and violent accidental door movements during the operationof the railway ear.

Another object vis to design such retarding means so that it may be easily operated by a simple operation.

A further object is to provide a simple, rugged and inexpensive retarding means which may be easily adapted to any of the conventional designs of railway car side doors now in service.

'Another object is to` associate a handle with the above mentioned retarding means so that when a force sui'l'icient for moving the door is exerted upon the handle, the retarding meansV is automatically adjusted so as to release the door for easy movement. l

Another'object is to associate a handle with. the retarding 4means in such a Way that when the handle is moved to a position in which an operator can utilize it for moving the door, the

-' retarding means is automatically released and the'V door may then be easily moved. *Y Other objects and advantages of my invention' will be apparent from the following detailed dei 4 scription by referring to the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings: Fig. 1 is a partial side elevation of a railway' car showing the side door and one modification of the retardng means applied thereto, the retard- 1 ing means being in normal position.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged view of the retarding, means in the position shown in Fig. 1. f

Fig. 3 is a section on line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a view of the retarding means with; the door in'theposition shown in Fig. 1 land with'V the retarding means Areleased so that the door may be moved.

Fig. 5 is a view of the retarding means withv the door in the full closed position shown in Fig."1

` and with the retarding means shown inA the`posi` tion in which it prevents movementof the` door.l Fig. 6 is a view of the retarding means in nor-V mal position when the door is in a positionpintermediate the full open or full closed position.

isis

Fig. 7 is a view of the retarding means when' the door is in the intermediate position shown' in: Fig. 6 and when the retarding means is release Q to permit movement of the door. Y

Figs. 8 and 9 are views showing the positions taken by the retarding means for looking `the doorwhen the door is moved from` the position of Fig...

6 a limited amount to the left and right, respectively- Fig. 10 isa view similar to Fig. 2 s'howinga ii'iodi'ied form of retardingmeans. Fig.. ll is an elevational view of a modied form of my invention showing the retarding means at rest sothat a limited movement of the door in either direction fromthe position shown. causes the door to be locked againstvfurther movement. f v Fig. Vl2 a section on line I2-l2 of Fig. 11., 'Y Fig. 13 is a view similar to Fig. 12 showing they retarding means in position to permit free move- Fig. 16 is a View similar to Fig. 14 showing the-- 2 retarding means moved to a position wherein the door may be freely moved in either direction.

In Fig. 1, the side wall 2 has a door opening and a side door 3 is shown in a position wherein it completely or fully closes the doorway. The track 5 for supporting the door 3 is a longitudinally extendingpinwardly facing channel memv ber preferably secured to the side sill 6 of the car. A roller housing 8 is rigidly mounted upon each of the lower corners of the door 3 and rollers 9 are rotatably mounted within the housings 8 and arranged to roll upon the upper laterally f extending flange II of the channel track 5. 'I'he track 5 is preferably provided with spacedapart depressions I2 arranged sol that when the door is in the full closed position or full open position, the rollers 9 are above the depressions I2'.

l. track 5.

Figure 7 is a view also when the door is in the Vabove mentioned intermediate position but wherein the dog. 28 has been lifted so that both The rollers 9 are thus relieved of the weight of the door, which weight is transferred to parts of the roller housings 8 or other rigid parts of the door .which engage the track 5, The friction between such `.partsandthe track/retards movement of -the door;V .The starting lever I4 is pivoted (I5) tothedoor v3 andY hasits lower end I1 arranged to "enga'ge'astarting bracket I8 secured to the trackY 5 for thepurpose of ,utilizingY theleverage 'to move the rollers 8 out.of the depressions'llf- Such a starting lever ismore fully disclosed in Schlesinger Patent No. 1,963,152, June 19, 1934. n

The retarding means is comprised, in part, by a base memberV rigidly secured to thedoor 3 and provided with` a rigid,v outwardly extending pintle 28. VAdog 28 is providedpwithv a slot 29 which engages the pintle V28 -so4 that such doer 28 is free tovbothslideand rotate upon the pintle 26. A retainingk washer 3|v is provided and the end of theipintlel is formed withy a head 32 overthewavsher 3| for the purpose of coniining the dog-728.1Thegdog28 includes spaced apart lugs34, v35,v the upper lug 34 being disposed above and the lower lug below the upper laterally extending 4flange II of the vchannel track 5. A handle 31 is` provided on the upper end of the dogA 28` to provide a means for the lifting thereof. Whenthe doorl 3-is inthe full closed or full open position andthe dog 28 is resting freely, such dog takesthe position shown in detail in Figs. Zand 3. 'When it is desired to move the door v3` alongthe track, the dog 28 is moved upwardly, preferably by lifting on the handle 31, Iand assumes the position shown in Fig. 4. In this'position, both .the lupper (34) and lower (35) lugs. are entirelyfree'of Vthe track 5 and the door 3` may then `be freely moved horizontally any desired/distance providedthe dog is held at all times substantially inthe position shown in Fig. 4.

If an attempt is made to move the door `toward the right from the position shown in Fig. 2 without lifting the dog 28, the upper lug 34 drags on the4 upper flange I I of the track 5 and causes theldog 28 to rotate to the. position shown in Fig.A 5. I n such position, the lefthand edge of therlower lug 35 engages the underside of the flange 'I l and the right hand edge 4I of the upper lug 34 engages the upperl side of the laterally extending flange II of the track 5. The dog 28 thus -rmly grips the track 5 and further movement of the door toward the right is not possible. 'The lower side 43 of the upper lug 34 is preferably convex so thatthe dog 28 rotates more easilyv as the lug 34 is dragged over the track 5. The edges 48, 4I of thelower (35) and upper 4(34.). lugs which engage the track 5 upon rotation of the dog are preferably relatively keen -the upper (34) land lower (35) lugs are free of the laterally extending ange II of the track 5; the door 3` may then be freely moved in either direction. When the dog 28 is resting, as shown inv Figure 6, and the door 3 is moved to the left, the dragging of the upper lug 34 upon the track 5 rotates the dog 28.to. the position shown in Figure 8 and the.. gripping thereof upon the trackv 5 prevents further movementof the door as rhereinabove described. Similarly, if the door .ismovedifrom the pcsitionshown ,in Figure 6 toward the right, the dog 28, aftera limited movement of the door 3, assumes the position shown in Figure 9 and further :movement of the door is not possible.

In the modification shown in ation of the retarding means is similar toV that heretofore described, with `the exception that the downwardly facing side 58 of the pintle 5I is` V-shape and the slot 53 in the dog 54 `is similarly V-shape at'the bottom so that-when the;

dog 54 is lifted by hand for thepurposeV of freeingy the lugs 34, 35 from the track 5, such move-- ment will be in a substantially vvertical direction. thereby preventing unintentional rotation of the dog with consequentvaccidental gripping of the' track.

In the modication shown in FiguresI 11 to 13, the dog 51 is similar to that heretofore described and is provided with a downwardly facing hook 58 at the upper end thereof. The handle 60. is formed of preferably round rod and ismade substantially in the shape of a rectangle journaled by its top side BI in bearings formed by straps '64 secured to the door 3; A part 68 of the top side 6I of the rectangle is offset to form a hook engaging part. and 12, the handle is hanging freely and the dogr 51 is also resting freely upon the trackj in such a position that vif an attempt is 'madeto move the door either tothe right or to the left, the dog 51 will'be rotated about the pintle 59 and will grip the track 5 in the manner hereinbefore described.

v In'order to obtain hand clearance'to get a grip on the handle 58 for the vpurpose of moving the door, the Voperator must raise the handle 88 to the vposition 'shown in Fig. 13. When the handle 80 is thus moved, the hook engaging part 65 engages the hook 58 of the dog 51 and raises the dog to the position showny in Figure 13 wherein both the upper (68) and lower (69)' lugs thereof are'free lofthe laterally extending flange' II of the channel track member 5 and the door strip 15 of the door 3. -A pintler 164 is rigidlyv secured to and extends outwardly from? the re-v Fig. 10, the oper- As shown in Figures,- 11

inforcing plate l2, The movable member '|8 of the retarding means consists of a substantially triangular plate '|9 having depending therefrom a dog 8| similar to that heretofore described. The triangular plate 19 is provided with a at inverted V slot 82 which engages the pintle 'I6 and the plate '|9 is retained on the pintle by means of the integral head 84 thereof. In the position shown in Figure 14, the dog 8| is resting with the upper lugr 85 thereof supported by the laterally extending flange of the channel track 5. When the dog 8| is in this position, a limited movement of the door 3 in either direction causes the dog 8| to rotate and grip the track 5 in the manner hereinbefore described. When it is desired to move the door, a horizontal force may be exerted upon the movable member '|8 by means of the rigidly attached handle 8'| and the plate 19 is moved relative to the door 3 until one end of the inverted V slot l82 engages the pintle 16, as shown in Figure 16. The retarding means is moved to the position shown in Figure 16 by a force on the handle 81 which tends to move the door 3 toward the right. As the end of the inverted V slot 82 engages the pintle 16, the dog 8| is lifted to the position shown in Figure 16 wherein both the upper (85) and lower (88) lugs are clear of the laterally extending ange of the track 5 and the door may then be freely moved. Force on the handle 81 toward the left would cause the right hand end of the inverted V slot 82 to engage the pintle 16 and the dog 8| would again be clear of the track ange A ledge 80 on the rear side of the dog engages the lower side 9| of the reinforcing plate 12 when the dog 8| is moved upwardly for the purpose of preventing accidental rotation of the dog 8| and consequent gripping thereof on the track.

The accompanying drawings illustrate the preferred form of the invention, though it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the exact details of construction shown and described, as it is obvious that various modifications thereof, within the scope of the claims, will occur to persons skilled in the art.

I claim:

l. Retarding means for a sliding door wherein said door is arranged to move longitudinally of a member having a laterally extending part, a dog, and means to rotatably mount said dog upon said door, said dog including a pair of lugs, one disposed above and the other below said laterally extending part and being spaced apart the proper distance to grip said part upon limited rotation of said dog, and a handle pivotally mounted upon said door and having an oiset portion eccentrically engaging said dog, whereby when said handle is swung on its pivot said offset portion raises said dog to a position in which said lugs are clear of said part.

2. Retarding means for a sliding door wherein said door is arranged to move longitudinally of a member having a laterally extending part, a dog, and means to rotatably mount said dog upon said door, said dog including a pair of lugs, one of said lugs having a convex portion disposed above said laterally extending part, and the other of said lugsA having a portion disposed below said laterally extending part said portions being spaced apart the proper distance to grip said part upon limited rotation of said dog, a handle pivotally mounted upon said door and having an oiset portion eccentrically engaging said dog, whereby when said handle is swung on its pivot said oiset portion raises said dog to a position in which said lugs are clear of said part.

3. Retarding means for a sliding door wherein said door is arranged to move longitudinally of a horizontal member having a laterally extending part, a dog rotatably mounted upon said door and having a convex portion normally engaging said part, said dog also having a portion normally spaced below said part, said portions being spaced apart and disposed on opposite sides of and so as to grip said part upon limited rotation of said dog, and a handle pivotally mounted upon said door and having a protrusion engageable with said dog eccentrically, whereby when said handle is moved on its pivot said protrusion moves said dog to a position in which said portions are clear of said part.

4. Retarding means for a sliding door wherein said door is arranged to move longitudinally of a horizontal member having a laterally extending part, a dog, means to rotatably support said dog upon said door, said dog formed with a notch providing opposed spaced surfaces extending on opposite sides of said member, said surfaces being adapted to grip said member upon limited rotation of said dog, and a handle pivotally mounted upon said door and having a protrusion engageable with said dog eccentrically, whereby when said handle is moved on its pivot said protrusion moves said dog to a position in which said surfaces are clear of said part,

5. Retarding means for a sliding door wherein said door is arranged to move longitudinally of a member having a laterally extending part, a dog, means to rotatably mount said dog upon said door, said dog including a pair of lugs, one disposed above and the other below said laterally extending part and being spaced apart the proper distance to grip said part upon limited rotation of said dog, and a pivotally mounted handle usable to move the door longitudinally of said member, said handle having a part engageable with said dog eccentrically, to raise said dog upon pivotal movement of said handle to a position in which said lugs are clear of said part and to retain said lugs in said position while the door is being moved by said handle.

ARTHUR E. SMALL. 

